Thai MCOT Selects Playbox

Thai state-owned television broadcaster MCOT has chosen a PlayBox Technology system as the core of a new five-channel HD service. The new system was designed, installed and commissioned at MCOT's Bangkok headquarters by PlanetComm, Thai partner of PlayBox Technology.

AirBox provides automated content playout for satellite channels, cable head-ends, over-the-air broadcasters and corporate TV users. In its automated playout mode, the system allows fixed-time scheduling for weeks ahead. AirBox can be used for live production as well as automated playout. Every clip in the playlist, except the one currently playing, can be trimmed, edited or repositioned seamlessly without stopping the current playout session.
CaptureBox can handle a range of input signals, accepting HD/SD SDI, analogue sources and MPEG transport streams. Four video sources can be monitored on a single screen and controlled via a new interface. Audio levels can be monitored as loudness/true-peak displays and adjusted when required.
The ingested materials are available for playback shortly after ingest commences. The feature set also includes capture list import from third-party traffic systems, support for CEA-608/708 closed-captioning and automated VTR control via RS-422 with batch-capture listing.
"MCOT were impressed by the stability and multiformat capabilities of the PlayBox Technology AirBox playout server as well as the system's ease of use," comments PlanetComm Technical Manager, Mr. Natthaphol. "MCOT needed to handle MOV files from Sony XDCAM422 sources as well as high definition MXF and standard definition DV25 MOV content. The solution we have provided exactly matches the requirements of the channel's fully file-based workflow.
"The system we have installed comprises ten AirBox high-definition servers configured as five main and five backup. We have also integrated five CaptureBox dual channel HD servers, five TitleBox character generators, a Multi Playout Manager and an AlarmBox.
"Reliable post-sale technical support and the potential for future system expansion are obviously key requirements for any modern broadcast playout system. We are able to meet all these requirements from our own Bangkok headquarters."
TitleBox delivers on-air graphics that can be controlled interactively. Multi-layered simultaneous crawls, rolls, animated logos, clocks and text templates can be activated by a mouse click.
Multi Playout Manager (MPM) is a fully assignable monitoring and control system with rights management for multiple AirBox channels from one or more Internet-connected PCs, locally or from anywhere in the world via IP.
MPM is a networked workflow solution created for multi-channel playout centres to monitor and control all channels locally and assign full or restricted rights for any of the TV channels to one or more people to remotely monitor and/or control the TV channels from a remote PC, tablet, mobile phone or similar device.
AlarmBox provides a range of possibilities for the automated distribution of messages; delivering fully automated alarm messaging wherever they are needed via channels such as email, cell phone, or SNMP. It automatically distributes and delivers messages from sources to output destinations as defined by user setups. Multiple alarm messages can be sent to one output or one message can be simultaneously distributed to multiple outputs. Actions such as GPI triggering or external command can also be performed, based on the details of any specific alarm.

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